French 'sadness' over flat champagne sales

'Today, there isn't a mood conducive to celebration'

(CNBC) — The French are popping fewer champagne corks and spending less on toys as higher taxes, a deteriorating economy and an exodus of national icons sap the country’s joie de vivre .

“There is a moroseness, a sadness among the French population at the moment which has led to our compatriots drinking a little less champagne this year,” says Paul-Franois Vranken, chairman and chief executive of Vranken Pommery Monopole, one of the country’s best-known Reims-based houses.

“Champagne consumption follows the mood of the country. Today, there isn’t a mood conducive to celebration.”